He Wants To Build Robots?

My son's interests have taken a turn for more detailed subject matter when it comes to building things. He has decided he wants to build robots. Mom has never even built a model car kit let alone an electronic one. He has been building with the small Lego kits since Christmas. He just completed one of Lego's Creator cars sets that builds three different cars, in less than three hours. He loves Legos and spends time rebuilding them into objects different from the original kit too, usually robots. However, building stationary toys is no longer interesting enough and now he wants them to move.

So today we went to Grandma's junk shop (her garage) to find things to recycle into robots. I also found an old coffee pot, which I brought home for him to take apart (basically stalling for more time to research robots) and lots of odds and ends that I hope can at least create a toy robot. I was hoping he'd be happy with something crafty like these robots. Very interesting but, they don't move.

I also found a cool little website called "Build Your Own Robot" that lets you design robots from a selection of different parts. I think it was originally part of the promotion for a movie. I will warn you however in case you don't notice and your child does, there is a link at the bottom to build your own weapon as well (like a sci-fi weapon I think). Of course as soon as he was done designing his robot, my son wanted to know how to animate it. I told him that this program was not written to do that and perhaps he will learn how to design a program that can someday (more stalling).

What on earth is this child going to want to do by the time he his ten? He's only five now. The one good thing I have going for me is so far, he is a very independent learner. All I really have to do is provide him with access to the web and materials and he figures most things out for himself. Right now he is only reading at about a second grade level so I think I have some time before he starts reading software or engineering manuals (maybe)!